Prisoners of the past: Veteran stories from the archives

Gordon Durrant and more than 100 Far East veterans are attending events commemorating the victory over Japan and the end of the Second World War .

The first Canadian ground troops to see action were the Winnipeg Grenadiers and the Royal Rifles of Canada , a Quebec regiment.

They were sent to the Far East in November, 1941 , to help defend Hong Kong , at the request of Maj.-Gen. A.E. Grasettt , the retiring commander of the British forces in Hong Kong .

The PoWs saw few of the Red Cross parcels that saved the lives of many Allied prisoners of war in Europe .

The prisoners knew nothing of the progress of the war, that the Japanese were pulling back as the Allies fought their way through the Pacific .

In the Hong Kong camps, 128 Canadian PoWs died of starvation, disease and physical abuse.

Former PoWs held by the Japanese suffered more health problems than other veterans, said Calgarian John Dearden .

“If they hadn’t dropped the atomic bomb, no one would have survived another winter,” he said.

I could murder the Japanese . In fact, I belted a Japanese captain. It was the best bloody thing I ever did.”.